Forget Blockbusters. Watch These Movies Instead on July 4th

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Forget Blockbusters. Watch These Movies Instead on July 4th

Open Road Films

In the month of June, cinematic giants like Jurassic World and Inside Out and even the Melissa McCarthy smash Spy made almost a billion dollars at the domestic box office—and that's just three movies! So over this long holiday weekend, it's time to consider the other guys. To help you do that we've pulled together a list of smaller scale films you can still find in theaters or on streaming services, so whenever you're not BBQing or blowing stuff up this Independence Day, get out there and support the visions of independent filmmakers. If you love the singularity, long-standing bloody rivalries between Indian mob families, hip-hop, quiet dystopia, zombie comedy, creeping dread or heartstring-pulling quirky dramedy, this roundup has literally everything you need.

Dope

What it's about: Inglewood teenager Malcolm (Shameik Moore) and his two best friends are total geeks. They've got a pop punk band and they're obsessed with 1990s hip-hop and fashion. Dope is what happens when Malcolm gets stuck with a bag of drugs and has to offload it as fast as possible while trying to get into Harvard. WIRED talked to the director, Rick Famuyiwa, and star, Moore, and wrote all about it right here.Where to watch: In theaters now.

Felt

What it's about: The story of Felt is very simple. A woman named Amy is a sexual assault survivor, and we follow her around her life as she struggles to cope with life after her trauma. The story of how Felt got made, however, is one you won’t expect.

Amy onscreen is played by Amy Everson, and this movie is based on her real life, even using her bedroom, her porch, a bar she worked at, and her own handmade costumes—skin suits adorned with male genitalia that she calls her "super hero costumes"—for shooting. "I was feeling very repressed by a male-dominated society and by my womanhood, so I viewed my costume as the ultimate symbol of power," says Everson. "It's a costume I can feel powerful in. I think the backstory of a lot of superheroes is kind of this vigilante dark history of wanting vengeance, but ultimately, a character in a film is not a superhero." Everson is quick to point out that despite the presence of empowering costumes, she does not endorse the idea of penises bestowing privilege on anyone, and says that her character becomes the villain by the end.

"I don't want the interpretation that having a dick is a superhero costume," Everson says. "It's not. It's kind of a warped sense of power."

Professionally, Everson has never acted or performed at all, and she calls Felt a "pseudo-documentary" that her and director Jason Banker didn't write through so much as build around basic ideas. "All of it was improvised and a lot of it was just exploring what unfolded in front of the camera as we were shooting," Everson says.

That makes the movie's social situations feel something like dramatizations of real events instead of scenes, meant to demonstrate the challenges Everson faced re-integrating herself back into her own life post-trauma. The rest of what you see, like Amy alone in her quiet moments, is really Everson processing her pain. "During the process of shooting I was going through some of the worst of my experiences," explains Everson. "We don't actually capture what exactly is happening, but a lot of the crying and depression—Banker was there while I was experiencing a lot of stuff. So we were translating the connection of what I was currently going through with some of my past." That gave *Felt'*s director what he needed for a very powerful film.

"It's very difficult to find that person who's willing to open up and explore their life on camera," says Banker, whose background is largely in documentary work. "It takes a lot of courage and a willingness to want to put your voice out there, and I just wanted to create an environment where she felt like she could do that and not be afraid."

To keep costs and interference down, Everson and Banker took on people willing to pitch in their time to fill out supporting roles. The only actual actor is Kentucker Audley, who plays Kenny, the boyfriend. Banker prefers to work on a small scale and does as much of the work he can on his own. For Felt he did the sound, direction, photography, editing, and producing with almost no help. "It's almost like a home movie, that kind of level where it's just two people, two friends that are making something together," he says.

In a surreal turn, Everson won Best Actress honors at the 2014 Fantastic Fest, where Felt debuted. It was a strange honor, considering she was just playing herself living through the most challenging period of her life, but she says the film's positive reception and the support people have shown since the premiere is important to her.

"This isn't just one experience or one person's experience," Everson says. "It's part of a greater system and pattern, a society and culture that creates a hostile environment for trauma survivors. Having received a lot of empathy a being able to speak on it has been therapeutic."

Felt might not be the "Things exploding!" movie you imagined yourself seeing this Independence Day, but it's a quiet thriller unlike anything you've seen before, and it's well worth your time check it out.Where to watch: In theaters now.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

What it's about: This most darling of Sundance darlings took home the Audience Award and Grand Jury prize at this year's festival. It tells the story of a dying girl named Rachel (Olivia Cooke) by way of her amiable classmate-turned-friend, Greg (Thomas Mann, he's the "Me"). Greg's mom (Connie Britton) makes him hang out with Rachel after her leukemia diagnosis, and the two forge a quirky, loving bond while she battles cancer and he makes movies with his best friend, Earl.Where to watch: In theaters now.

Advantageous

What it's about: A single mother, Gwen (Jacqueline Kim) lives with her daughter, Jules (Samantha Kim), in a near-future American city. The economy is tanking and unemployment has skyrocketed with too many people vying for not enough work. When Gwen gets laid off from her job at a biotech company because she has aged out of being marketable, she must decide if she's willing to become the living prototype for her company's latest technological breakthrough—and trade in her existence—in order to ensure her daughter's future. WIRED has the whole story on the movie from its director and stars here.Where to watch: In theaters now, and available digitally on Netflix, iTunes, and Amazon.

Fresh Dressed

What it's about: This documentary from *Mass Appeal'*s Sacha Jenkins will take you through a jam-packed history of the circular influence of hip-hop on fashion and fashion on hip-hop, stretching from the days before the Emancipation Proclamation all the way to now. It's got Kanye West, Andre Leon Talley, Nas, Karl Kani, Dapper Dan, and dozens of other contributors filling out this sartorial history of urban identity in America. You can read more about it from WIRED right hereWhere to watch: Available on Vimeo.

Burying the Ex

What it's about: Max (Anton Yelchin) is a good guy struggling to break up with his ultra-suffocating girlfriend, Evelyn (Ashley Greene), and the problem gets morbidly solved when she gets hit by a bus and dies—or so he thinks. The thing is, Max promised Evelyn forever, and she's not about to give up on that promise just because she's dead. Burying the Ex is a light horror-comedy about a stage-five zombie clinger, and it's directed by Joe Dante, who as far as we're concerned sits in the Hall of Legends for directing both Gremlins movies, Innerspace, The Burbs, and Rock 'n' Roll High School. Dante has done mostly TV over the past few years, and while Ex is no Gremlins, it's a fun romp that will come in handy on your lazy Sunday.

There is one thing to be very excited about in this movie, though, and that is its star, Yelchin—which isn't a comment against the movie so much as it is true of any time Yelchin shows up in a leading role. The guy is just great. He's funny. He's relatable yet handsome in way you can never quite pin down, but also can't shake. And he takes on weird projects (e.g. the Fright Night remake, Odd Thomas, and Charlie Bartlett) alongside blockbusters like Star Trek and The Smurfs and thoughtful indies such as Cymbeline and Like Crazy. No matter where you find him, he just delivers.

"Around the age of 11 or 12, it really sort of hit me, the kind of profundity and I guess the odd nature of filmmaking," says Yelchin, who's been on screen since he was nine. "It's colorful and rich and it's all of our history, and the thing that I've been drawn to since that age is filmmakers. If I saw myself doing anything in any kind of way it would be working with filmmakers who have a particular vision and responding to that vision."

Being that he values filmmakers with a distinct vision, the choice to work with Joe Dante was an easy one for Yelchin. "I just wanted to work with Joe," explains Yelchin. "I admire his films, and I think they are incredibly intelligent and funny, and for me they're largely about Joe's love of genre and love of cinema, and that sort of subsumes thematically and philosophically most of his films. That's something that I relate to and I admire."

Well said, Anton. We're down.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Time Lapse

What it's about: It's an age-old question: If you had the opportunity to glimpse the future, would you take it? But the twist in Time Lapse is that you're only able to see one single moment from each day, captured in a massive camera device and burned into a polaroid. And if you deviate from the events pictured, you risk suffering fatal consequences.

The movie's star, Danielle Panabaker, is an alt-genre princess at this point, with movies like Girls Against Boys, The Crazies, Friday the 13th, and the show The Flash dotting her resume. As an industry veteran at 27, who she works with has become a big deciding factor in the roles she takes. "For me, it's always been about the different filmmakers I get to work with and exploring different things," Panabaker says. "With Time Lapse, it was cool to work with these young, up-and-coming filmmakers, and they clearly have such passion for what they're doing." We're very happy that Panabaker has been steadily on our screens thanks to the CW, but we're glad to know she hasn't abandoned the sci-fi and fantasy movie fans she made all the way back in her Sky High days. You remember, and you love it.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Ex Machina

What it's about: Alex Garland (Dredd, 28 Days Later) wrote and directed this streamlined sci-fi suspense thriller about an Internet billionaire/eccentric genius named Nathan (Oscar Issac) who has created perhaps the most perfect AI being yet. Her name is Ava (Alicia Vikander), and in order to put her through a close-quarters Turing test, Nathan brings in a carefully selected human component, Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), to carry out the exam. If you missed it in theaters, see on your small screen now, and if you want to read about it, WIRED has the full story on your new crush Alicia Vikander here and a conversation with Garland here.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter

What it's about: An office worker from Tokyo named Kumiko (*Pacific Rim'*s Rinko Kikuchi) is in a terrible rut, and in her boredom becomes obsessed with the movie Fargo, which she mistakenly interprets as a documentary. Looking for a major shakeup in her banal day-to-day life, Kumiko sets out to find the stolen loot buried in the wintry wilds of North Dakota in the film. The weirdest part is definitely that Treasure Hunter was inspired by a real-life woman named Takako Konishi, who died of exposure in Minnesota after traveling through North Dakota, allegedly in pursuit of the same cash buried in the classic Coen Brothers movie. The real tragic story is that Konishi was severely depressed and went to America specifically to kill herself after the man she'd fallen for abruptly left her. He was from Fargo.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Gangs of Wasseypur

What it's about: The provided description of this is too good to leave out: "Gangs of Wasseypur mirrors the tumultuous and explosive growth of modern India with ferocious cinematic intensity. As with Al Pacino's Michael Corleone in The Godfather, it's the least likely of Sardar's children—the perpetually stoned Faizal—who rises to the top ranks of the Khan crime family, vowing brutal revenge on their longtime nemesis, the wily and seemingly unstoppable Ramadhir Singh." And thus we enter the 70-year-spanning timeline of violent confrontations between two Indian mob families over five hours of run time, told in two parts.Where to watch: Available on Vimeo.

We Are Still Here

What it's about: A middle-aged couple loses their only child in an accident and relocates to the country in an attempt to begin anew. The big problem is that their new home is essentially alive, and the demon residents that live in the basement are very quick to anger. We don't want to spoil any of the twists, but this low-budget South by Southwest standout from first-time director Ted Geoghagen is a lovely little horror gem, and an excellent execution of the standard haunted house tale.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Camp X-Ray

What it's about: This was Kristen Stewart's first big credibility role after wrapping up the Twilight saga, and she plays a young soldier named Cole assigned to a detail at Guantanamo Bay. Cole befriends a detainee at the infamous holding facility, and as you might assume, it changes both of them forever. But reserve your judgment, folks, because Stewart and her co-star Payman Moaadi both turn in excellent performances here. Give K.Stew 2.0 a chance this Independence Day!Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

54 (The Director's Cut)

What it's about: This box office bomb turned cult classic now has a fresh and unrated director's cut. Revisit the heyday of Ryan Phillippe as he plays Shane O'Shea, a young man with big city dreams who becomes a prized busboy and bartender at New York's legendary Studio 54. Neve Campbell, Salma Hayek, Mike Myers, and Breckin Meyer are all beckoning you to give this movie a second chance, now with more gay!Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Ned Rifle

What it's about: The story of Ned Rifle actually started in 1997 with the movie Henry Fool from Hal Hartley. Nine years after Fool, Hartley brought us Fay Grim, and now, nine years after Grim, we get the final installment in the trilogy (sometimes called the Grim Family Saga), Ned Rifle. The title character is the son of Grim and Fool, and he's on a mission to kill his father for ruining his mother's life. But when Aubrey Plaza's character, Susan, shows up his plan starts to come undone.Where to watch: Available on iTunes and Amazon.

Creep

What it's about: The first thing to know about Creep is that Mark Duplass is the executive producer and co-star alongside director (and co-star) Patrick Brice, who also directed the upcoming movie The Overnight, which was stewarded by Mark and his brother Jay. The Duplass-verse grows! For this movie, Brice plays a videographer getting paid $1,000 to shoot one day's worth of footage for Duplass' character, Josef, who claims to be suffering from terminal cancer. But things go from quirky buddy comedy to isolation horror when Josef insists his documentarian stay with him through the night. If you've been wanting more Duplass-style scares since Baghead, this is your chance.Where to watch: Available on iTunes.